Novel stirring device



March 1, 1949. B. P. PALINKAS NOVEL STIRRING DEVICE JNVENTOR: BERNARD R PALINKAS ATTORNEY Filed Jan. 2, 1948 Patented Mar. 1, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE NOVEL STIRRING DEVICE Bernard P. Palinkas, Trenton, N. J. Application January 2, 1948, Serial No. 179

4 Claims.

My invention relates to stirring devices or spears such as those frequently served with fruit punch or with mixed drinks such as Old Fashioneds or Manhattans. In particular my invention relates to stirrers which are formed so as to provide an interesting diversion for those to whom drinks are served.

The stirrers or spears normally provided with drinks are formed of wood, fibrous or plastic material, and are discarded after use. When several persons have drinks with which stirrers are provided, there frequently is an accumulation of these stirrers about a table, and during the course of conversation they are often idly bent or broken into various meaningless pieces or shapes so that they clutter up the table and may be brushed onto the floor. presenting an unsightly appearance.

In accordance with my invention such stirrers or spears are formed with scoring, marks or cuts and may have an illustration thereon whereby the user may form the spear into a predetermined figurette which may have any ofnumerousamusing and attractive shapes, depending upon the particular cuts, scoring or marking provided. The markings or cuts themselves do not generally indicate the shape of the figure which will be producedso that if no illustration or directions are provided each stirrer will present something of a puzzle or surprise for theuser, and will afford an interesting and pleasant diversion or entertainment for those seated about a table having drinks. spears may have a conventional or suitable form for practical use, and are capable of being manufactured economically. In the preferred forms of my invention hereinaiter shown and described,

the spears or stirrers are designed to be bent or.

shaped into amusing or grotesque figures .or animals which are interesting in themselves and may be arranged in the form of a parade or otherwise for the entertainment of the patrons. In fact, the spears or stirrers are frequently so attractively shaped that they are takenhome by the users instead of bein scattered about and broken up promiscuously or in a manner to present an untidy appearance at a table.

At the same time the stirrers or Fig. 1 is a plan view of a typical stirrer embodying my invention and provided with markings to indicate the manner in which it may be bent to simulate a pelican or swan.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a figurette pro duced from the stirrer illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of an alternative form of stirrer embodying my invention and having typical markings and scoring for producing a grotesque bird-like figurette;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the figurette produced from the stirrer shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an illustration of another type of marking and scoring for a stirrer embodying my in vention;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a giraffe-like figurette produced from the stirrer shown in Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a further modified form of stirrer embodying my invention; and

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a figure produced from the stirrer shown in Fig. 7.

In each of the forms of stirrer illustrated in the drawings the shape of the stirrer or spear is conventional in outline and embodies a paddle portion 2, a shank 4 and a pointed spear portion 6. ,As shown in each of the figures the spear is marked with transversely extending lines which are illustrated as full lines at those points Where the material is to be bent away from the observer, and as dotted lines at those points where the figure is to be bent toward the observer. These lines may consist of scoring, but in order to avoid undue weakening of the stirrers it is generally sufficient to provide markings 'to indicate the manner in which the article is to be bent. Thus asshown in Figs. 1 and 2 the paddle portion-2 may be bent with respect to the shank 4 in a direction toward the observer along the dotted line 8, and may thereafter be bent away from the observer along the fulllines l0. An outline showing the form of the finishedfigure may be printed on the paddle portion 2 as shown at, 1, but the One of the objects of my invention is to pro-' vide anovel type ofstirrer or spearvsuchas those served with various drinks.

Another object of my invention is-to provide a stirrer which may be formed into the shape of other figurettes'.

birds, animals, or k A particular object of my invention isto pro-' vide a stirrer or spear with scoring 01' to form an predetermined marks, cuts to indicate the bending necessary interesting or'amusin'g figurette.

These and other objects and features ofmy in vention will appear from the following description thereof in which reference is made to the figures of the accompanying drawing.

0f Wood or fibrous material outline may be omitted if the device is to have the character of a puzzle or surprise.

When bent the stirrer will assume the form shown in'Fig. 2 so as to simulate a pelican or swan- Furthermore, when the stirrer is formed thepaddle portion 2 may be moistened and bent-from the dotted line position to the full line position so that paddle portion will be curved and the figurette will rock about the paddle portion as a base in a very amusing and life-like manner. t

In the'construction' shown in Figs. 3and 4 the paddle portion2 is scored or out along the lines l2 extending inward from the end of the paddle portion and parallel to the sides thereof so as to provide foot sections l4 designed to be bent forward along the full lines It. A central tail portion l8 may then be bent upward along the bends.

3 dotted line 20. The remainder of the paddle portion 2 and shank 4 of the stirrer is designed to be bent into a zig-zag form along the dotted lines 22 and the full lines 24 so as to produce a grotesque and interesting bird-like figurette of the type shown in Fig. 4.

The stirrer illustrated in Fig. is provided with a paddle portion 2 having two pairs of scoring or cuts in the paddle portion and one pair of-cuts in the spear portion. The cuts 26 are arranged to form rear leg portions 28 and a central tail portion 30 whereas the scoring 01' cuts at 32 provide front leg portions 34 for the figurette. The transverse bend lines 35 where the leg portions are bent may be disposed at a slight angle as shown in order to cause the leg portions the figure. The shank 4 of the stirrer is designed to be bent upward along the line 36 to provide an elongated neck portion for the figure to be made, while thcspear portion 6 of the stirrer is designed to be'bent forward along the full line 38 to form a head for the resulting giraffelike figurette. The cuts or scoring 40 in the spear portion 6 are located on opposite sides hereof so as to provide ear or horn simulating projections 42 when bent upwardly as shown.

. In the construction shown in Figs. 7 and 8 the dotted line portion of the stirrer -may be removed by breaking off the spear portion of the stirrer along the line 44.. The remainder of the shank 4 may then be bent toward the observer along the lines 46 and away from the observer along the full lines 48. The paddle portion 2 is scored or out along the lines 50 to present leg portions 52 which are bent at 54 to produce feet 58 for the figurette. Similarly the central tail portion is'bent along the dotted line 58 as shown' in Figs. '7 and 8. Thus a very interesting form of duck-like figurette is produced from the stirrer.

It will be apparent that numerous other types of marking, cutting and scoring may be employed so as to enable the user to make numerous alter-'- native figureswhich a're'interesting, attractive or amusing. Instead of applying transversebend lines to the blank such as those shown at 8, 10, 16 and 35, the adjacent portions may be contrastingly colored to indicate'the locations of the Thus in forming the figures shown in p to spread apart and provide a better support for 1 bend lines to insure proper formation of a-figure.

The stirrer portion may, of course, be provided with an advertising or design, and thus lend itself to identification so that when carried home from a hotel or tavern it will inform or remind observers of the source of such an attractive figure. The advertising advantages of the stirrers and the possible incentive provided to purchase drinks at a particular establishment therefore is of outstandin value.

For these reasons it will be apparent that my invention may be embodied in numerous types of stirrers, spears and tlgelike for amusement and advertising "purposes, and is capable of many modifications in form and construction. It should therefore be understood that the particular embodiments of my invention shown in the drawings are intended to be illustrative only and are not intended to limit the scopeof my invention.

I claim:

1. A stirring device made of deformable material and having bend lines located thereon in predetermined positions, score lines formed in said material and each extending from one edge of the device to one of said bend lines and positioned so Y that when saidmaterial is severed along said score Figs. 4 and 6 the spear portion 6 maybe red, while the shank 4 is yellow, or some other contrasting color. Similarly, the leg portions i4, 28 and 34 may be red or yellow, while the balance of the paddle portion 2 of the blank may be green or some other contrasting color to produce a figure which is of grotesque or amusing appearance', and one in which no score lines are necessarily employed.

It will further be evident that the material of which the stirrer is formed may be wood, fibrous material, or various plastics capable of being bent or otherwise shaped or deformed to produce the figures desired. When the stirrer is formed of wood with the grain extending longitudinally of the paddle portion and shank the score lines prefline and bent along said bend lines a figurette o predetermined shape will be produced. 1

2. A stirring device made of deformable material and having a. paddle portion and a spear portion connected by an elongated shank, bend lines located on the paddle portion and shank and extending transversely thereof at predetermined points, leg forming sections located on opposite sides of the paddle portion and defined by lines extending parallel to said sides from one end of the paddle portion to one of said transversely extending. lines, said sections and lines being positioned so that bending of said material along the bend lines will result in the formation of a figurette of predetermined shape.

3. A stirrer made of deformable material and having a paddle portion and a spear portion connected by an elongated shank, bend lines located on said shank and paddle portion and extending transversely thereof, a pair of score lines extend ing from one end of said paddle portion to one of said bed lines parallel to the edges of said paddle portion to define leg sections and said score lines and bendlinesbeing arranged in predetermined positions such that severing of said material along said score lines and bending thereof on said bend lines will result in the formation of a figurette of predetermined shape.

4. A stirring device having a paddle portion and a spear portion connected by an elongated shank.

said device being formed of wood having the grain thereof extending longitudinally of the paddle erably extend parallel to the grain of the wood portion and shank,-bend lines located in predetermined positions on the paddle portion and shank and extending across the grain of the wood and transversely of the paddle portion and shank, and a pair of score lines extending parallel to the grain of said wood and to the sides of the paddle portion from one end of the paddle portion to one of said bend lines, said score lines and bend lines being positioned so' that when the wood is severed along said score lines and bent alongsaid bend lines a figurette of predetermined shape will be produced.

BERNARD P. PALINKAS.

(References on following page) 1,180,591 Lee Apr. 25, 1916 Name Date Mariner June 27, 1939 Higgins Feb. 6, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain Dec. 24, 1924 

